


The Blade

by foolofatook001



Category: Minecraft (Video Game)
Genre: BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD, Dadza, Dream Smp, Spoilers, Techno has voices in his head, it's a bit violent but i don't go into detail
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-20
Updated: 2021-01-17
Packaged: 2021-03-10 18:47:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 7,526
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28181868
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/foolofatook001/pseuds/foolofatook001
Summary: In which Technoblade fights with the voices in his head and loses. Techno's POV of most of the major events on the Dream SMP. Trying to keep current with big SMP events. Ch 4 - Doomsday. Rated T for Techno's violent and bloodthirsty chat
Relationships: (even though in canon Techno's not technically part of that), No Romantic Relationship(s), Sleepy Bois Family vibes only, irl shippers get lost
Comments: 8
Kudos: 121





	1. The Blade

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by a number of things but mostly Techno's making the chat canon as voices in his head (pog!) and Techno audibly saying "Not yet, chat" during the Season One Finale. I heard it when I was rewatching I think like Tommy's stream or something and I was like 'holy crap that's terrifying how I can I turn this into something'. 
> 
> The dialogue is mostly lifted straight from the various streams, if sometimes paraphrased. (I am like BBH in the fact that I prefer not to use profanity, but I didn't want to replace every other word in Quackity's dialogue with 'muffin' so I just changed it enough to still get the gist.)

“Why am I here?” Technoblade wonders aloud. 

_use the rocket launcher kill them all kill schlatt kill quackity blood for the blood god_ says the chatter in his mind.

“Techno, you’re our inside man,” Tommy tells him. “You’ve got to try and take out Schlatt if you get the opportunity, ‘cause we can’t get close enough to do it.”

“Imagine not bein’ invited,” Techno mutters. “What a bunch of losers.”

_losers haha losers loooooooosers use the rocket launcher kill schlatt pog_

He ambles into Manberg, the chat a dull murmur in the back of his mind. He entertains himself by beating the best Manberg has to offer (Please, Fundy, like sticking him underwater while he had max enchanted armor was really going to work). 

_technoblade never drowns pog loooooooosers kill schlatt blood for the blood god_

And then it comes time for the speech. Tommy had said he’d talked Wilbur out of blowing up the whole city after Tubbo’s speech. Techno certainly hopes that’s the case. He doesn’t really feel like being blown up today. Tubbo is up there giving his speech, but Wilbur is NOT blowing up Manberg so it doesn’t matter…

“Tubbo, Tubbo, Tubbo. I know what you’ve been up to,” says Schlatt. Well then. Maybe the speech matters a little more than he’d thought. 

_go help tubbo what are you doing kill schlatt he’s right there cmon help him kill him kill_

“Technoblade! Technoblade, get up here!” Schlatt shouts, and Techno goes -- he can’t blow his cover yet. He is surrounded by enemies. He is good, but he doesn’t want to start a fight if he doesn’t really have to. It’s not time yet.

“Techno, I’m gonna need you to take him out,” Schlatt says.

Technoblade stalls. “Take him out? Like, for dinner?” Tubbo is staring at him, wide-eyed, but his expression says that he will trust Technoblade. Wilbur and Tommy are probably whispering to him, figuring out a plan.

_kill schlatt you could do it right now he’s RIGHT THERE blood for the blood god kill kill_

“You’re not gonna take him out for dinner, bro!” Schlatt is losing all patience. “You’re gonna kill him! Right here, right now, on this stage, in front of everyone! And you’re gonna make it hurt!”

Quackity and Fundy are babbling, trying to get Schlatt to ease the punishment.

“You don’t have to do this, Techno!” Niki cries.

He cannot hear them over the chorus of _kill schlatt use the rocket launcher blood for the blood god blood for the blood god save tubbo help him kill him help him kill him help him_

“I’m sorry, Tubbo,” he says, and Schlatt laughs, a low, dark chuckle. “I’ll try and make it as painless and as -- colorful as possible.”

Tubbo is stammering in fear and shock. 

Techno takes aim.

_no no no what no what help tubbo don’t kill him kill schlatt kill quackity help kill no_

The first shot is delayed -- it seems there’s no effect.

The second shot kills Schlatt, Quackity, and Tubbo all at once.

Technoblade begins to laugh at the sheer irony of it.

_blood for the blood god blood for the blood god kill them all technoblade never dies_

He keeps laughing as he fires off more shots into the crowd below. He keeps laughing as Tommy pearls down to him and starts shouting. He keeps laughing as he flings his trident in the air and sails away, because he has done what the chat wanted, and _oh_ , does it feel good.

  
-0-

Tommy is angry with him. He doesn’t understand. They should have left this behind in the Pit. They’re still working toward the same goal. But Techno knows Tommy doesn’t trust him as much anymore. He gave his reasons for shooting Tubbo, and Tubbo is back now anyway, so what does it matter? 

Although his reasons given for shooting Tubbo did not include the chat. The chat is his own secret, and it will stay that way. They won’t trust him to be able to take down Schlatt’s government if they know he hears voices in his head. They’ll treat him like they’re treating Wilbur now, and handle him with kid gloves and barely-concealed impatience. Leave him out of the important planning.

He is not Wilbur. He is not a man on the verge of breaking. He is essential to the success of this revolution. He is the Blade, and he does what he sets out to do. And he is going to destroy Manberg. 

The chatter in the back of his mind has been quieter since the festival anyway, when he gave in to their wishes and slaughtered most of Manberg -- it’s as if they’ve been appeased.

Maybe the blood from the Red Festival is enough to satisfy their ‘Blood God’.

But he doubts it.

-0-

“Tubbo! Tubbo, take your place on the podium!” Tommy shouts, grinning.

Technoblade stands below in the audience, face blank and fists clenched at his sides. After all they’ve been through, and they’re just falling right back into the same patterns?

Dream leans over to him. “Never thought I’d see you bowing to Tubbo and Tommyinnit,” he whispers.

_anarchy no government get rid of the government spawn withers? kill kill them all_

The chat has returned with a vengeance. 

Tubbo is giving another speech.

_withers spawn withers no governments none wither wither wither blood for the blood god_

“You know, my first -- my first presidential decree is going to be that we take down all my, erm -- my execution decorations,” Tubbo says, hopping down off the podium and crossing to the edge of the field, beginning to pull down the festival decor.

_kill kill kill blood for the blood god withers spawn the withers wither wither kill_

“Not yet, chat,” Technoblade says, softly. He follows Tubbo to the edge of the field.

He takes aim. No one sees.

His first shot does not miss this time, and the people are in an uproar.

“Don’t you see?” Techno cries, impassioned, struggling to be heard over the clamor of the outraged army and the clamor inside his head. “You think Schlatt was the problem? No! It was government! Power corrupts!”

A fight breaks out.

 _withers withers withers spawn withers?_ says the chat. But there is no time, and Technoblade is fighting. It really isn’t much of a challenge. Even in their borrowed armor, they are no match for the Blade.

Then L’Manberg explodes, and Phil is there, and there is a pause as everyone takes in the damage.

_phil phil phil? what why when now wither spawn wither? wilbur wither wilbur wither_

“What did you think you were doin’, Tommy?” Techno asks, and he is exhausted all of a sudden. He is so tired. They are on the verge of his dream and no one will listen, and the voices in his head keep demanding more and more.

Tommy stammers out an answer, but Techno is already shaking his head. “You think you’re a hero, Tommy? Is that what this is? Let me tell you a story,” he says, pacing back and forth in front of the soul sand. “The story of Theseus. His country was in danger and he sent himself forward into enemy lines. He slayed the Minotaur! He saved his city. But you know what they did to him, Tommy? They exiled him. He died in disgrace, despised by his people. That’s what happens to heroes, Tommy.”

Protests are raised, but Technoblade is done listening to the voices outside of his head. And something in him has just been begging for this release, this opportunity to cause some _real_ damage, to finally bring L’Manberg to its knees and cripple it enough to keep it from rising again. 

“You want to be a hero, Tommy? You want to be a hero? Then DIE LIKE ONE!” he roars, and the Withers spring to life under his hand, and he follows them into the field of battle, glorying in the utter chaos, and the chat exults right along with him.

-0-

He has to go. They know where his vault is, and they will come after him, once they’ve regrouped and reformed their little government, rebuilt L’Manberg from its smoldering ashes. They will want revenge. They blame him most of all for the destruction -- Wilbur is beyond their reach now (and he doesn’t remember anyway). But the Blade -- he is still there and still a threat.

“I’m retirin’,” he says to both Phil and the chat. “I’m gonna build myself a base and live the peaceful life. Maybe I’ll go back to farmin’.”

_potatoblade farm potatoes dance potato boy dance farming oh no I know where this goes_

“A fortress of solitude,” says Phil, and laughs. 

“You can come visit,” Technoblade tells him. Phil is the one person he can trust, out of all the people in all the world. 

And Techno doesn’t want to be alone with just the chatter in his head to keep him company.

Philza follows him north, helps him start his new life away from everyone else. Technoblade keeps the man he considers both a friend and a father safe from the baby zombies, and Phil’s presence keeps the chat to a mere whisper, saying mostly good things.

_dadza moving house farming for you the world phil potatoes eeeeeeeeeeeeee_

He gives Phil a compass to his house when he’s finally set it all up.

It is on one of their boat rides out to Techno’s home that he decides to tell Phil his biggest secret. 

“I hear voices, Phil,” he admits. “That’s why it’s so hard to be peaceful. The voices… they say so many things. But most of all… they demand blood. All the time. They’re just so loud. I’m tryin’ to ignore them but it’s so hard, Phil…”

Philza is silent for a moment. Then he says what Techno least expects: “I remember.”

The surprise must show on his face, because Phil elaborates. “That was a thing that happened to you a lot when you were younger. You’ve always had that, it’s just that you got better at ignoring them.” His smile is sympathetic, and his face says _I know, son_. “It’s because they’re not getting fed.”

“I just want to _stab_ something,” Technoblade confesses, and his voice is barely above a whisper. “But I’m holdin’ back,” he says, louder. “I _wanna_ be a good person, Phil.”

“I know, son,” Phil says, out loud this time. “I know.”

-0-

They’re coming for him and something’s happened to Phil. 

_fight them fight them blood for the blood god destroy them all kill kill no more peace_

He doesn’t want to do what the chat is telling him to do. He’s enjoyed his peaceful existence, tending to his bees, trading with the villagers, raising the turtles, riding Carl around in the snow and talking to Ghostbur and Phil, unworried by the petty politics happening far away in L’Manberg. He shot his shot. It’s no longer his problem.

It’s Quackity, Tubbo, Fundy, and Ranboo, standing in front of his house, armed to the teeth. They’ve got good gear, but he is still fairly confident he can take them if worst comes to worst. Retirement or no, he is still the Blade. 

And Technoblade never dies. 

Threats are exchanged. The chat is growing louder.

_just kill them it’d be so easy kill kill blood we want blood fight fight fight stab kill_

He thinks he’s successfully starting to talk them down. Ranboo is reasonable; he certainly doesn’t want to get into a physical confrontation. Fundy and Tubbo are wary but willing to talk it out. Quackity, however, is spoiling for a fight.

Techno misses the days when all he had to do was turn his head in Quackity’s direction and the man would go screaming. Familiarity breeds contempt, it seems.

“Please don’t make me kill all of you,” he begs. “ _Please_ just leave.”

 _blood for the blood god no peace fight kill go on do it do it kill them kill them all_ says the chat. 

“You know what, I’ve had enough of this! You have to pay for your crimes. You’re coming with us, Technoblade! Right now! There’s no other way around this!” Quackity shouts, patience finally gone.

“If there’s no other way…” Techno says, slowly. “If there’s no other way…”

_they’re here to kill you kill them first kill kill blood for the blood god fight them kill them_

“ _I choose blood!_ ” he screams and throws all his potions over himself, leaping into action, thrusting his sword straight at Tubbo’s chest.

The Blade is a whirlwind of motion; Tubbo and Fundy both fall to his sword easily and he is closing in on Ranboo when he catches sight of Quackity, sitting on top of Carl.

“What’re you doin’ with that horse, Quackity?” he asks, panicked. Carl is essential. Quackity knows this. 

“Drop your weapons,” Quackity orders. “Or I’m gonna kill your horse, Techno. Do it! Now!”

_no no no what no CARL CARL NOOOO just kill him kill him CARL kill quackity cmon_

He drops his weapons and armor and lets them take him back to L’Manberg in irons. They lead him to the square, just outside Phil’s house. Phil is there, standing on his balcony with a worried look on his face and iron manacles on his feet. 

_phil phil phil! no what help phil help fight them help kill fight help_

“It’s me you want, leave Phil out of it!” Techno says, furious. “Phil, what did they do to you?” he yells up to him, ready to _go_ if they’ve harmed Phil in the slightest.

“I’m under house arrest!” Phil calls back. “I’m fine, I just have to wear these.” He gestures to his ankles.

“Get in the cage!” Tubbo orders, herding him up onto the platform and shoving him into the iron enclosure. They gloat, Quackity taking photos and Tubbo and Fundy jeering at him, captured and powerless.

 _cmon cmon what are you doing just kill them run away save phil escape run_ the chat urges.

“This isn’t a trial, Technoblade. It’s an execution,” says Tubbo, gesturing to the contraption above their heads.

“I’d kinda guessed that,” Techno says, dryly.

There is a brief moment of disorder while Tubbo reads out the charges -- Punz drops in from the sky like Dream’s agent of chaos that he is and starts throwing snowballs and laying TNT. Techno stays in the docket, not wanting to get caught in the crossfire with no armor or way of defending himself. Phil watches it all from his balcony, white-knuckled. Ghostbur drifts by, seemingly unaware of the gravity of the situation.

“Pull the lever!” Tubbo screams, and Techno tenses.

_nooo so many levels totem technoblade never dies totem canon death? totem totem totem_

As the anvil hurtles toward him, he pulls out his Totem of Undying and braces. There is the feeling of impact, but he is still very much alive when he opens his eyes.

_technoblade never dies technoblade never dies techNOBLADE NEVER DIES POOOOG_

Techno leaps up on top of the anvil and over the iron bars of the cage, sprinting toward where he last saw Carl -- but there is Dream, riding away on that very same Carl.

_dream? what what what TECHNOBLADE NEVER DIES carl wait where why pooooooog_

There is the clamor of confusion behind him as the Butchers realize that their execution has gone awry. Philza laughs and laughs, and Techno cannot help but smile.

Dream leads him to a tunnel and gives him Carl and supplies, whispering “Take the sewers” before disappearing. 

But the sewer entrance isn’t big enough for Carl. Techno sets about widening it, muttering to himself. Time is of the essence, but he’s not losing Carl. That is not an option. 

“What is this?”

Techno freezes, shoves Carl into the tunnel as far as he can go, then turns to face Quackity, who is furious and covered in blood.

_fight fight fight get your stuff back technoblade never dies blood for the blood god_

Quackity is spitting mad. “I’m going to kill you, Technoblade. You’ve ruined this country. No one respects us, and it’s all because of _you_. You’re going to pay. I’m not losing this fight. Not this time!”

“You all used me!” Techno shouts back. “And when I went into hidin’, when I retired, you still couldn’t just leave me alone! You hunted me down!”

All Techno has is a pickaxe -- not his usual choice of weapon, but he hefts it and readies himself for the fight anyway.

“I’m not going to lose to you! You’re going down!” Quackity screams, spit flying as he swings wildly at Technoblade. 

Techno dances around his ungainly swipes, taunting him. “You really think _you_ can take me? Get outta here!” He dodges another wild slash. “I’ll put this pickaxe through your teeth!”

“I don’t think so--” Quackity starts.

Techno gets him straight in the chest with the full power of his swing behind the netherite pickaxe, and Quackity falls to the ground with a dull thud.

_TECHNOBLADE NEVER DIES LITERALLY TECHNOBLADE NEVER DIES NEVER_

“That’s what I thought,” says the Blade to his fallen opponent, and makes his escape.


	2. Welcome Home, Theseus

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Y'know, 'The Blade' was just going to be a oneshot but then I was like wait but what about Tommy... Also Ranboo snuck in there. I love that guy. He's awesome. So yeah, here's the iconic scene. Hope you like :)

Technoblade sees his house getting closer and nudges Carl into a faster trot, allowing himself a sigh of relief. Nearly home. 

_ technoblade never dies technoblade never dies get wrecked quackity pog with a PICKAXE pog pog pog blood for the blood god death revenge technoblade never dies burn l’manberg to the ground _ , chants the chat, though they have calmed somewhat on the journey home. 

He stables Carl and starts to head inside the house when he realizes the lower exterior door is open. Frowning -- he’s got cured villagers in there, and the mobs will go after them -- he goes to close it. One of the Butcher Army probably left it open when they captured him and Carl earlier. 

Just before he gets to the door, Tommyinnit comes sprinting out of his house, and Techno blinks. Did he just--  _ heh? _

_ tommy! tommy tommy tommy tommy look look tommy _ , the chat says, excitedly.

“I know,” he growls out loud, and then gives chase. Tommy has paused in the middle of the snowy field behind the house, digging in the dirt. Techno stares down at him, utterly dumbfounded. What on earth is Tommy doing here, of all places? Last Techno had seen him, he’d been living out his exile in a little camp with logs about halfway between Techno’s Arctic base and L’Manberg.

Tommy looks decidedly worse for wear, his clothes tattered and his armor clearly on the cusp of breaking. There are dark bags under his eyes and his face is grimy. His hands and feet are wrapped in bandages. There is a faded green kerchief around his neck. 

He glances up. “Take a picture, it’ll last longer!” he exclaims, a manic grin spreading over his face. “ ‘Ow do, Technoblade?”

Techno can only blink. “What’re you doin’ here, Tommy?” he finally demands, hand dropping to the handle of his newly-acquired pickaxe. “Why were you in my house?”

Tommy cackles wildly, jumping out of the hole he’d been digging and dancing out of arm’s reach. “Technoblade, you look uglier and uglier every time I see you!” he shouts. “But really, how’ve you been?”

“What were you doin’ in my house, Tommy?” Techno repeats, louder. He is exhausted. He was arrested, nearly executed, and fought Quackity with a pickaxe as his only weapon before riding Carl for miles to get back home. And it is  _ cold _ . He doesn’t have the time nor the patience for Tommy’s antics.

Tommy darts back toward the house. “I’d prefer you call it  _ our _ house!” he calls over his shoulder. Technoblade runs after him, trying to minimize the damage he knows Tommy’s going to do to the nicely organized chests that Phil spent so much time on. 

“It’s  _ my _ house, Tommy, what’re you talkin’ about?” he says, frustrated. 

“Oh, I’ve moved in, big man!” Tommy says, a fractured grin pasted on his face. “Been sharing your supplies and all that.”

“You -- I --  _ heh?" _ Techno is left speechless.

_ tommy tommy tommy tommy tommy! tommy,  _ the chat says and Techno suppresses a growl.

Suddenly Tommy is darting down the ladder to the basement, and then he lifts a slab to reveal another, sub-basement -- well, ‘basement’ is generous. It’s more like a bolt-hole, tiny and crammed with stolen things. Techno follows him down.

“You’ve -- you’ve just been livin’ under my house like a raccoon? Stealin’ my stuff?” Techno says, incredulous.

“Borrowing, borrowing, big man,” Tommy corrects, and Techno huffs, irritated. “I’ve moved in!” He’s repeating himself. “See, after I had a talk with my good friend Dream -- well, he wasn’t really my friend -- but he was the only one…” He trails off, and some of the manic energy he’s had since Techno first saw him bleeds away. There is a slightly lost look in his eyes. Then he rallies. “Well! Doesn’t matter right now. I had to come here! You had stuff! And I have to get my discs back, Technoblade.”

Techno tilts his head to the side. Tommy has been cast out by L’Manberg, just like he predicted. Tommy is at the end of his rope, alone, and in need of a cause. He’s on the outs with Dream for some reason (though Techno isn’t really on the friendliest of terms with Dream either, to be fair), and he  _ is _ a good fighter.

It never hurt to have someone at your back when you were dismantling a government, and though Phil would be his first choice, Tommy isn’t a bad second. 

_ team team team anarchy blood revenge death team tommy team tommy tommy allies revenge destroy l’manberg save phil repay every injustice a thousandfold blood blood BLOOD _

“I can help with that,” he says slowly, speaking both to the voices in his head and the boy crouched across from him.

“Really?” Tommy says, sounding surprised.

“It’ll hurt L’Manberg,” Technoblade says with a shrug, playing it off like it’s less important than it is. “And it’s not like we haven’t worked together before.” He’ll get Tommy back for taking his things eventually. He doesn’t like it when people mess with his stuff. He’s tired of others taking advantage of his hard work… but he’ll let it slide for now. He and Tommy are on the same side for the moment, after all. 

“Pog _ champ _ ,” Tommy says, and scurries over to ring the bell that he has somehow squirreled away down here. Techno’s not even going to ask.

“I’m goin’ to bed,” he says instead. “It’s been a long day. We’ll get some plannin’ done tomorrow.” He levels a glare at Tommy. “Don’t take any more of my stuff,” he warns. 

Tommy snaps to attention, throwing up a salute. “Yessir!” he says in his best Quackity impression. Techno winces and climbs back up the ladder.

He’s already regretting the spur-of-the-moment decision to ally with his basement gremlin.

-0-

The next day is chaotic -- Ranboo and Ghostbur show up out of the blue and Techno manages to…  _ convince _ Ranboo to give him his armor back. Then Ranboo decides he’s going to tag along on their wood-gathering and netherite mining resupply mission, and he and Techno end up… bonding? Over their mutual exasperated fondness for Tommy?

_ ranboo new ally? team team team bring him to the dark side no kill him let’s stab some orphans blood for the blood god _

Techno isn’t sure what he’d expected to happen today but that certainly never crossed his mind. Ranboo is a tricky one to figure out, because though his allegiance is officially with L’Manberg, he seems to have no qualms about being friendly with Tommy and Techno. He also drops a casual update about Phil, which Techno is thankful for but still confused by. Since when does an erstwhile member of the Butcher Army have a friendly relationship with Philza?

And Ranboo won’t give him a straight answer.

Finally the half-Enderman has to go back to L’Manberg. Techno’s grip eases on his pickaxe handle as Ranboo leaves, and he turns to Tommy, who is looking far better than yesterday, though he still has a frenetic tinge to his smile. 

“Let’s get you some gear,” Techno tells him, and they begin the hike up to the Vault. “I haven’t shown this to anyone,” he continues, striding through the snow and trusting that Tommy will keep up. “Not even Philza.” He pauses, then says, more quietly, “I didn’t want him to see this side of me.” He doesn’t know why he feels like he has to explain himself to Tommy but he finds himself doing so anyway. “I’ve been resisting the voices, but honestly… it’s time.” They’re nearly there, just around this ledge. “I was always prepared to come out of retirement… Call me a pessimist, but I never believed it could last. And you know me,” he says, huffing a slight laugh. “Gotta have my hobbies.” The natural-looking rock face comes into view, and Techno can’t help the smile that slowly spreads over his face. He motions to the spot where Tommy will get the best view of the inside when he opens the hidden door. “Stand right here.”

Tommy eyes him warily, hand coming down to rest on the hilt of his borrowed sword. “Is this a trap?” he asks.

Technoblade snorts. “Tommy,” he says flatly, “if I wanted to hurt you I would have stabbed you a while ago.”

“Good point,” Tommy mutters, and goes to stand on the spot. 

Techno hits the hidden button and waits with an anticipatory grin.

_ vault effing yes blood for the blood god repaid a thousandfold revenge anarchy death,  _ the chatter in the back of his mind chants, growing louder and louder as the door slowly lowers into the ground with the help of redstone mechanisms.

Tommy’s mouth is gaping as he takes in the walls filled with rows upon rows of wither skulls, the chests lining the edges of the stone brick room, the enchanted netherite armor standing at the other end. “Holy--!” He can’t even finish the sentence, he’s too dumbfounded.

“Welcome home, Theseus!” Technoblade crows, and the chat cheers loudly in his mind.


	3. You're Not Worthy

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> fun fact I actually wrote this before the doomsday stream in which Techno says a lot of things about how he feels about Tommy switching sides, so pog to me for getting Techno's character right I guess? I was going back over it and a lot of his internal monologue is pretty similar to what he said in his argument with Tommy while they were fighting. 
> 
> Anyway, hope you like this. Not sure if I'm going to do a Doomsday chapter though.

This is a bad idea. Techno knows it even as he follows Tommy into the ruined Community House, even as Tommy confronts Dream and Tubbo, even as he draws his sword because Tommy’s started the attack against overwhelming odds.

_ tommy tubbo traitor house dream’s lying lying liar tommy wouldn’t do it tommy didn’t do it blood blood blood we want blood _

“I-- I don’t want to be this person,” Tommy says, quietly, and the fighting dies down. “I’m so sorry.”

“Tommy,” Techno says, urgently, eyeing all the people standing above them in the ruins of the Community House; Dream’s grinning mask and everyone’s bared weapons. “Tommy, we could get out of here. Just pearl away, regroup and come back another time. I can cover your escape, let’s just go.” He is the Blade. He is fully equipped (with even a trident, on loan from Phil). He can probably do enough damage for him and Tommy to get away, but he knows a prolonged fight won’t end well. 

“Techno,” says Tommy, and his blue eyes are filled with resolve and regret. “If this is who I’ve become… then I don’t want to be me anymore.”

Technoblade stares at him. “Tommy, what’re you sayin’?”

“I’m -- I’m sorry,” Tommy repeats. 

“What do you mean, Tommy?” Techno asks, softly. He knows what is coming, but he has to ask all the same.

“I’m with Tubbo,” Tommy says, stepping away.

Every time. 

This happens to him  _ every time _ . He yelled at the people of L’Manberg for being hypocrites, for not seeing history repeat itself, but here he is, the biggest hypocrite of them all, because he cannot learn from his own mistakes.

_ Every time. _

He takes them into his trust. He gives up his time and his hard-earned resources for them. He fights for them. He  _ wins _ for them. He calls them allies, friends even.

And they always, always turn around and stab him in the back, making it clear they were only using him.

The chat is roaring in his mind.  _ Blood take hold of your destiny avenge the injustice tommy tommy why blood kill them all tommy nooooooo blood for the blood god tommy tommy tommy _

“Tommy,” he begins, slowly, evenly, but picking up volume, “when I said that I was going to destroy L’Manberg, but that you didn’t have to help me… When I said that you didn’t have to help me, Tommy, I meant that you could sit this one out, not  _ switch sides _ and fight against me!” He breaks off, furious, and the chatter in the forefront of his brain is furious along with him. “You’re betrayin’ me! Just usin’ me, like everyone else!”

“I’m worse than everyone I never wanted to be, doing this with you!” Tommy shouts back.

“Tommy, think hard about the next thing that comes out of your mouth because you can’t undo this,” Technoblade says, drawing his sword. “There’s no goin’ back from this.”

“Technoblade, I know what I’ve done and I hate me for it,” Tommy admits. Techno picks up the unspoken words that come after.  _ I know what  _ _ you’ve _ _ done _ . “I’m sorry,” Tommy says once more, and he looks away. 

He can’t even look Technoblade in the eye. 

“Wooooow,” Techno says, drawing out the word, face and voice deadpan, giving away nothing. This…  _ hurts _ . More than he ever thought that it would. Of course he thinks Tommy is annoying and frustrating and downright dumb at times, but he’d still been a friend, someone who would come cause chaos with him. Someone who had earned his respect. 

He decides to make light of it, make it a joke, pass it off like it’s nothing, even as the chat screams with rage inside his head. “Well, one-v-thirty it is!” he laughs, brandishing the Orphan Obliterator. “Who wants to go first?”

“Well, now, hold on,” says Dream, sticking out an arm to stop him. Techno eyes him warily, with no little surprise. 

The surprise only grows as Dream begins to chuckle. “You are an absolute idiot, Tubbo. You’re no president at all! You get pushed around by everyone on the server! You’re so  _ stupid _ , Tubbo. Now I don’t have to pretend to care about your dumb country. I have the discs! That’s all I ever needed from you! And you just  _ gave _ them to me!” He throws his head back and lets out a wheezing laugh. “I mean, come _ on!  _ You can’t even run your own country! You had a traitor the whole time! Ranboo, one of your most trusted friends, was meeting with Techno and Tommy and told them everything!”

Techno’s eyes happen to meet Ranboo’s mismatched ones -- they are wide and panicked and the kid looks like he’s ready to just about die of fright. He’s petrified.

Techno remembers just a couple days ago, healing zombie villagers and making trades with Phil and Ranboo, the half-Enderman cracking jokes about orphans with him and helping defend Phil from baby zombies. He remembers Ranboo’s apology when he showed up the morning after Techno’s attempted execution, swearing he thought there was going to be a trial at least, and that he had done all he could to help Phil legally. 

Ranboo’s never stabbed him in the back, and Techno feels he at least owes him a little for that. 

“I have no idea what you’re talkin’ about,” he calls over the commotion that is Tubbo discovering that one of his precious members of the cabinet is a traitor. “I can’t even  _ spell _ Ranboo, and I certainly never got information from him.” That’s his story and he’s sticking to it.

He is mostly ignored.

Dream is continuing to rant about how useless a person Tubbo is. Then he turns to Techno. “Technoblade.”

“Yes?”

“Got any Withers?”

_ yes yES YES BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD DESTROY THEM ALL NOTHING LEFT OF L’MANBERG BUT A CHUNK ERROR, _ roars the chat, thirsty for blood. 

Technoblade feels a slow smile spreading over his face. “I’m likin’ where this is goin’,” he says. “Are you sayin’ what I think you’re sayin’?”

Around them, everyone’s faces have grown pale. “No, no, no--”

“You callin’ in that favor, Dream?” Techno asks, and he knows the eagerness is clear in his voice.

Dream scoffs. “What? No. Please, you’d destroy L’Manberg on your own, I’m not wasting my favor on that.”

Techno shrugs at that. Fair point. “You know me so well.” He grins. “I’ve got a  _ few  _ Withers, Dream. I’m sure we could work something out.”

Tommy gasps from behind him, like he can’t imagine Techno would ever do such a thing. 

“3 PM! Tomorrow!” Dream shouts. “We’re gonna finish Wilbur’s job. Say your goodbyes now, because when we’re through with it, L’Manberg will be nothing but a crater!”

“A chunk error,” Technoblade corrects, to the chat’s everlasting joy. He’s not sure why Dream is giving the L’Manbergians a day to possibly mount a resistance, but since he’s finally found someone who’s actually willing to destroy L’Manberg with him, he’s not going to be too picky. It’s not even a matter of dismantling the government anymore. It’s  _ personal _ .

L’Manberg must fall.

Dream pearls away and only Techno is left to face the accusing eyes of the rest of the server’s inhabitants. 

Techno only cares about one of them. “Tommy,” he says flatly, and the boy in question flinches. “Give me back my axe. You’re not worthy. I was wrong about that.”

“No, no, I am worthy,” Tommy insists. “Techno, you’re not really going to side with Dream to destroy L’Manberg, are you?” It’s as if he expects Techno to go  _ Psych! I was just kiddin’. Of course I’ll help you establish a government and forget about my vow of vengeance and everything L’Manberg has done to me and Phil! _

Techno can’t help but laugh. “I have been  _ so _ transparent about what I want to do to L’Manberg this entire time. I have told you every single reason why. How can you be surprised about this?” He sighs, the laughter fading, as Tommy stares at him with something like betrayal in his eyes. 

How dare he. 

How dare he act like  _ Techno’s  _ the one who betrayed  _ him _ .

“Tommy,” Technoblade says, “you’ve made a decision today that can’t be undone. I respected you. I still respect your decisions. I just hope you don’t come to regret it.” 

Then he dives into the water surrounding the wreckage of the Community House and makes good his escape. 

-0-

Dream is waiting for him at his base. Phil gets just enough time for the ten-second rundown (“Tommy’s stayin’ with Tubbo. Didn’t kill too many people, promise”) before Dream starts pestering him about the Withers. 

“So how many do you have? How much damage can we do?” Dream asks, his tone giving away his eagerness where his masked face cannot. 

“Here, I’ll just show you,” Techno tells him, leading the way to the Vault. This isn’t him tipping his hand to Dream. He cannot trust Dream, no matter how closely their interests may align at the moment. He can’t afford to be backstabbed again. But he’s not stupid. The Vault is severely nerfed at the moment. He spent some time before the festival carefully taking down most of the wither skulls on the walls and storing them in his Ender chest, leaving the ones at the very back of the vault just in case. He’d planned to spawn Withers today, but that hadn’t ended up happening, so now he has about a stack and a half of wither skulls in his Ender chest  _ where they are going to stay  _ while Dream is still here . 

He opens the Vault, letting Dream ooh and ahh over the door mechanism before gesturing toward his leftover wither skulls and the two soul sand structures. “I bet we could make five, maybe six Withers,” he says, and Dream cackles. 

“This is great, Techno. Just great. I can’t wait for tomorrow.”

_ hahaha idiot dream he doesn’t know haha homeless blood blood and fire dream chaos destruction _

“Me neither, Dream. Me neither.”

-0-

“So tell me what happened,” Phil says, as they eat their baked-potato dinner. “Tommy’s on their side now?”

Techno slams a fist down on the table. “He just switched sides! He wouldn’t even give me back my axe!” He raises his head to glare at Phil. “I bet if you’d given him your trident he wouldn’t have given that back, either!”

Phil’s hiding a smile. “You’re still not telling me what actually happened though, mate.”

Techno stands up, beginning to pace the room. “Tommy’s an idiot! He just thinks, oh, well I haven’t been betrayed by everyone in this government enough, think I’ll go back and let them do it again! I’ll take all Techno’s stuff and betray the one guy who stood by me because I’m a foolish  _ child! _ ” He snorts, throwing his hands in the air angrily. “This is why I don’t have friends, Phil! This is why you’re my only friend in the world! Because you don’t pull this, Phil. You don’t backstab me when I’m surrounded by the majority of the server, who are all hostile and waitin' to kill me!” 

Phil watches him pace, an unreadable expression on his face.

“I should never have gone in after him in the first place,” Techno says bitterly, sitting back down at the table. “I went in there to defend him. It was going to be the two of us, no matter what, and then he just--” He breaks off. 

_ blood blood blood and death take your vengeance technoblade repay a thousandfold traitor traitor give us blood give it to us _

“I don’t want to talk about it,” Techno finally says, standing once more and going to dig through a chest. He needs something to do. 

Behind him, Phil purses his lips and bows his head in thought. When he raises it again, he fixes Techno with his piercing blue gaze. “I’m coming with you and Dream tomorrow,” he says. 

Techno’s mouth lifts into half a smile. “I’d hoped so.”

“Everyone’s been so corrupted by this government,” Phil says. “It can’t happen again.”

_ killza ooooooh phil’s mad yessssssss chaos killza blood for the blood god phil’s popping off _

“We’re gonna bring that city down to bedrock,” Techno promises. 


	4. It Ends Today

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one's a bit short, but it ended itself naturally, I think. Also, I'm going to be writing a bit in a different fic (shameless plug-- 'For You the World,' it's a bit like this but with Phil) that overlaps with this, so I didn't want to write the same scene twice and repeat myself on accident.

Techno stands amid the smoking ruins of L’Manberg, silent. The Withers he and Phil have spawned fly overhead, hissing and diving down to bombard the hapless citizens or bury themselves in the exposed rock, waiting for a new victim to stumble across their hiding place. The dogs run wild, barking and snarling as they go after the few left on the ground. There are screams. Cries. And above them all, Dream skitters along his obsidian framework like a spider, putting the finishing touches on the mechanism that will bring about L’Manberg’s complete annihilation. 

There is no glory, no victory in this. Only necessity and grim revenge. 

_ death death destruction fire burn it to the ground chunk error chunk error death blood give us blood destroy it all blood for the blood god,  _ howls the chat, but Technoblade will not let them have free rein. Instead he stands, and he watches, as L’Manberg is demolished, piece by piece.

He hopes Ranboo got away. He and Phil had tried their best to get him out of the fight before the real destruction began. One good turn (or several, in Ranboo’s case) deserves another, and Techno never leaves a debt unpaid. To be honest, the fact that Dream still has a favor to hold over his head is making him antsy. He doesn’t like that Dream has that power, no matter that they are on the same side for now. 

Phil leaps along the roof of the ruined apiary, Totem of Undying clutched in one hand and a stack of TNT in the other, enchanted netherite gleaming in the firelight. Techno’s mouth quirks up in half a smile. It’s been a long time since Phil has cut loose like this, become the force of destruction Techno knows he is capable of being. 

The TNT begins to rain down in deadly lines from the obsidian up above the city and Techno’s half-smile becomes a full one. Finally, L’Manberg will be  _ gone _ . No more backstabbing. No more betrayal. No more government coming after him. No more power, leading to corruption. 

“Technoblade!” someone screams at him from across the deepening crater. He looks over his shoulder. It’s Tommy, still wearing the enchanted turtle helmet Techno made for him, hands clutched around the axe that Techno gave to him. “You didn’t have to do this!” Tommy’s expression is devastated, his eyes wide, pained. “I was the one who wanted the discs, we could have still had a government and coexisted! You’re so  _ selfish _ , Technoblade!”

“Selfish?” Techno roars back, for once in perfect unison with the chatter of hundreds of thousands of voices in his mind. “You used me from the start! You’re wearin’ my helmet right now!”

“You keep saying  _ we _ were the ones who betrayed you,  _ we _ did all this -- were you ever even our friend? You’ve stabbed us in the back so many times!” Tommy yells. “First the festival, then the inauguration,  _ now _ \-- How could you? We trusted you!  _ I _ trusted you!”

“No, you  _ used _ me as a weapon!” Techno screams, finally letting loose all his fury. “You’ve never thought of me as a person! You never thought of me as a friend, you just saw me as  _ The Blade _ .” He spits out the title with distaste. Once, he embraced it. Once, he gloried in the name. But after months of quiet living, of peaceful nights around the fire with Phil and Tommy... the appeal has worn off slightly. “That’s all I was to you,  _ The Blade _ . A weapon. Well, guess what? This weapon’s decidin’ what it’s destroyin’ now -- and that’s the government! I’m bringin’ this city to the ground!”

“Technoblade, just listen to me, for once in your life--” Tommy bellows, but Techno has had enough. He’ll say his piece. He’s kept his silence for too long and this has been festering for a long while.

“I listened to you for weeks!” Techno shouts. “And you turned right around and went back to Tubbo. Tubbo, who  _ exiled _ you! He sold you out to keep his government intact!”

“People are worth more than the government!” Tommy yells back, completely missing Techno's point.

“ _ I’M A PERSON!” _ Techno screams out; his throat feels like it’s tearing, his voice going hoarse from the smoke and the yelling. “And you stabbed me in the back for your government!”

_ Techno, Techno, we’ve got to get the discs back.  _

_ Sapnap, I hate to say this to you... _

_ It’s the Prime Log! I just stand next to it and it gives me all the Primes… _

_ But I’ve got something you’ll never, ever have. _

_ I think we should call it  _ **_our_ ** _ house, actually-- _

_ I have the Blade. _

_ Holy-- How did you do all this? This is mental! We’re unstoppable! _

_ Let’s cause some chaos, big man. _

“You’re selfish, Technoblade!” Tommy is yelling. “You’re destroying what we all made for your own self-gain. How could we have ever thought you were loyal to our side? You’re not loyal to anyone but yourself! You’re so selfish!”

“And you’re not?” Phil calls down from above, and Techno’s battered heart warms, just a little bit. Phil’s got his back, no matter what. 

Tommy screams something about him shooting Tubbo with the fireworks at the festival and Techno nearly rolls his eyes because Tommy just can’t let that go, even after everyone else has. 

“Tommy, remember when I was sittin’ there alone against the whole government, and you and Wilbur just sat there on the sidelines and watched?” he interrupts. “Did you step in? Did you say, ‘Don’t worry, Technoblade, we know it’s a high-pressure situation, but we’ll be with you, we’ll fight the world for you, Technoblade?’ No, he’s  _ The Blade _ , he doesn’t need any back-up, he doesn’t need friends! You just stood there and watched!” Techno gestures wildly with his rocket launcher. “And yesterday! You were surrounded by the entire server and I walked in there! I was willin’ to fight all of them for you, Tommy! I would have been there!  _ That  _ is the difference between us. So don’t speak to me of loyalty!”

“The government didn’t  _ interfere _ with you!” Tommy shrieks, clearly scraping the bottom of the argument barrel.

“The Butcher Army went and hunted me down! We clearly  couldn’t  coexist! All these problems have been caused by  _ your _ government, Tommy,” Techno says, suddenly weary. “I believe in freedom. And we can’t have that while L’Manberg is still standin’. You brought this upon yourselves.” He chugs a potion of slow falling and propels himself into the air with his trident, readying his rocket launcher at the same time. “Now live with the consequences!”

The fireworks explode. The TNT falls. Dream laughs.

And L’Manberg collapses.


End file.
